Placed on administrative leave, reason unknown

CryssyD · Sep 26, 2015

It sounds like this issue was affecting patient care; it is never appropriate for nursing/ancillary staff to bring patients into a personal conflict. That alone was reason to go to a manager/supervisor. As far as the suspension was concerned, I think HR may have been able to answer your questions about your rights and what to expect during the investigation process.

I'm glad it worked out in your favor--it sounds like this person was taking out his (?) problem with you on the patients, and that is just flat out wrong. So sorry you had to go through all this.

JerriHarp · Sep 26, 2015

I'm so sorry that this happened to you. I'm glad it turned out the way it did. You haven't given us enough actual details about what happened for us to really understand what the ordeal was about. I would love to be able to hear more of your story. In the meantime, stay strong!

allnurses Guide · Sep 26, 2015

Thank you to those that actually took the time to answer my question. I'm starting to feel attacked which is why this is the first thing I've posted in well over a year. It's such a catch 22. We get told by our supervisors to report any wrong doing we see, but as soon as we do, I'm the one who's wrong? Double standard. There was obviously other things going on between this person & I that is irrelevant to the question I asked, which was 'What are my rights as a nurse? Should I have been told why I am on administrative leave?' It's stressful enough being a nurse; I usually just hold everything in & when I finally go to someone for help, I get made to feel like I did something wrong when all I was trying to do was rectify the situation. Thanks

Ok - first questions what are your rights as an employee (nurse) in the state of Arizona?

Labor laws vary from state to state but most state say that if you are being investigated for something you have a right to know the allegations against you. This situation goes beyond At-will which means they can let you go at any time for any reason they so chose. You need to call the labor department in your state and find out your rights.

What did you tell them your co-worker did wrong? Your initial post was vague and made it seem that you two did not get along and you would prefer to not be scheduled to work with this person. That's a big difference from says she was not performing her job. If you are an RN and this is a care provider such as a CNA your hospital should stand behind your supervisory role.

If you reported this person for wrong doing then she may have retaliated with an allegation of her own. If so as long as your side of the sidewalk is absolutely clean you should be alright.

Hppy

neuron · Sep 26, 2015

In an ideal world, we can choose who we 'work' with. It is hard not to say, 'I don't want to work with that person'. The healthcare field is suppose to be one of the most morally correct fields, i.e. nurturing people, caring about people's needs, and when someone comes in, an employee, and doesn't do that, for example, a CNA who goes outside to smoke a cigarette and leaves the patients to someone else or doesn't take care of his/her patients first, yeah I do think we have a right to say we don't want to work with that person. Or going in to a room with another CNA or nurse who is rough with a patient, or has an attitude, we do have a right not to want to work with that person. If all the nursing managment does is think about themself, 'what's easier for me in scheduling', then that is bad managemnt.

On the other hand, we have to know what we are getting ourselves in to. I didn't know how corrupt some of these nurses and cna's or staff are until I started working with them. I knew some CNA's were rough, disrespectful, but I didn't know we had to 'work together' with them. From that point, move on, take your education/experience elsewhere and get in to a better culture.

Boetica · Sep 26, 2015

Sometimes these things can become toxic and endangers patient care, not to mention the target's nursing license.

Horseshoe, BSN, RN · Sep 27, 2015

I think you may misunderstand some of the posts here. If a CNA or someone else is refusing to do their job, it is absolutely appropriate to address it. You did nothing wrong by trying to document a refusal of someone to take care of a patient simply because she dislikes you. The issue I had was that your solution to the problem was asking not to be scheduled with this person, rather than working to get him/her to acknowledge and change the problematic behavior. The first action adds work for the managers, and reduces your stress, but the second gets to the actual crux of the matter, which is what's best for the patient.

If this person was in fact fired, it sounds like the right thing happened.